Differential Metabolomics Profiling of Dead and Halal-Slaughtered Poultry Meat Using Liquid Chromatography Coupled with Electrospray Ionization Quadrupole Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometry

Chicken meat is one of the most widely consumed and relatively inexpensive protein sources. However, fraudulent groups are engaging in the sale of deceased chicken meat to maximize profit. The present study aimed to establish metabolomics profiling to differentiate between dead and slaughtered chickens, using an LC-ESI-MS/MS-based metabolomics approach. Thirty-three chicken carcasses (13 postmortems, 20 Zabiha) underwent LC-ESI-MS/MS metabolomics analysis. A volcano plot highlights a minimum of 125 distinct features exhibiting significant differences between the two groups having ≥2-fold changes in intensities with p-values <0.05. Furthermore, robust discrimination models were developed using multivariate statistical techniques, including PCA and OPLS-DA. Among the key metabolites, xanthine was found to be upregulated, while phytosphingosine and C6-ceramide were found to be downregulated in dead chickens compared to slaughtered chickens. These metabolites could be used to detect dead or spoiled chicken meat. However, further research with larger sample sizes is needed for validation.